Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II (novelization)

[morwen_peredhil]

Finished it before I went to bed last night. (As with the first one, I just skimmed the boring, game-levelly combat bits, since it's going to be a lot more entertaining to play them than to read Sean Williams describing playing them.)

The verdict: Some okay, a bit of good, and A WHOLE LOT OF EPIC WTF.

Comments

[treenahasthaal]

*Gah*

I loved the The Force Unleashed! Now...

*Gah*

What a lame sounding story....

I might not even buy the book or game now. I'm pretty gutted on the story line.

[morwen_peredhil]

I'm sorry! I love TFU, too. A lot

[treenahasthaal]

Don't be sad

[morwen_peredhil]

I love Starkiller, but as with TFU1, I have to handwave the worst of his really over-the-top powers as game mechanics. And, yeah, I would pay good money to witness an undamaged Anakin Skywalker/Starkiller fight.

Vader being caught by the Rebellion doesn't really make much more sense when you read the book, honestly. Once Starkiller's attention was turned to Juno, it seems that the Vader I know should have been able to get away from mere General Kota and a few Rebels. I'm going for him taking a really huge risk as part of one of his evil plans (always plans within plans, those Sith), because I'm not sure how I can live with it if Vader isn't up to something.

Definitely a setup for a sequel - explains its middle-book/game syndrome. That's no excuse for the dreadful ending, though. They were already doing early work on planning TFU3 when that got canned by the new TPTB at LucasArts and Haden Blackman left the company, but now we're hearing chatter that some sort of work is possibly being done in that direction again.

[ansketil_rose]

My problem with the first TFU I book/game was that Vader decided to nurture the rebellion in order to "distract" the Emperor. When it's so obvious Palpatine just went "Vader - there's a rebellion. Deal with it." He's just making himself work and destabilising the throne he wants to inherit. It's silly and it broke my suspension of disbelief.

But the book was so-so and I enjoyed it for what it was worth, especially Juno.

This just sounds... painful. Especially constantly calling Galen "Starkiller" - urgh.

[morwen_peredhil]

My own personal TFU1 canon involves several more layers of Sith vs. Sith plots involving using Galen (and he is Galen to me, always) that he doesn't know about, and that the Emperor and Vader were lying like rugs to him and to each other at the end of TFU1. (I enjoy doing things like that, but we really shouldn't have to make up a much better, more believable story in order to enjoy the game/book.)

I agree that Juno really made the TFU1 novelization, and she brings a lot to the second one, too. In many ways, it's a much better book than TFU1, but that can't overcome the story itself being vastly inferior. I think most reasonably competent Star Wars fic writers could have come up with better stories than the one the pros have given us here.

Painful is the word for it. Also disappointing. I loved the first one so much, despite its flaws, and now I may have to declare this one Discontinuity.

[morwen_peredhil]

Obviously, Vader's never going to get to Dantooine and hasn't been told where Starkiller and Juno are taking him. I assume Vader escaping before arrival makes the Rebels clear out of Dantooine as a precaution. (Or else Vader was epically messing with Tarkin on the Death Star two years later, which is a thought that amuses me greatly

[morwen_peredhil]

I LOVE YOU, EMO!STARKILLER. All his thinky thoughts don't stop him from mowing down stormtroopers and evil/crazy clones like it's going out of style - nor should they. Most of his thoughts are more along the lines of "MUST FIND JUNO NOW NOW NOW" anyway.

Yeah, the book is worth getting out of the library, and it's definitely superior to the game.